GRAND HOTEL BRISTOL - CHEF GRAZIANO DUCA - ENG

01 July 2022

CHEF GRAZIANO DUCA AT THE GRAND HOTEL BRISTOL RESORT & SPA IN THE GULF OF TIGULLIO

Located in a charming historic property in Rapallo built in 1908 and overlooking the promontory of Portofino, the Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa of the R Collection Hotels group is a reference in Liguria for the gastronomic and wine proposal of its gourmet restaurant Le Cupole, its bar La Via della Seta, its Chamberlain terrace with a view on the Gulf of Tigullio and its casual Pool Bar.

At the Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa, the territory and its history, identity, scents and culture, is still the protagonist in the vision of the R Collection Hotels group.

RESTAURANT LE CUPOLE, HAUTE CUISINE BY THE SEA

Among the strengths of the Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa is the restaurant Le Cupole, listed in one of the most prestigious food and wine Italian guides thanks to the Chef Graziano Duca. His professionalism combines tradition, creativity and innovation, a cuisine marked by local traditions with a touch of authenticity. The restaurant Le Cupole, located on the ‘Roof Top’ of the Grand Hotel, offers a romantic and breathtaking view of the promontory of Portofino and the entire Gulf of Rigullio. The service, of great courtesy and refinement, harmonizes with the proposal of judicious menus.

GRAZIANO DUCA: TERRITORY AND TECHNIQUE

Great results have been achieved by the Grand Hotel Bristol under the expert guide of the Chef Graziano Duca both in the great gourmet cuisine of the restaurant Le Cupole, as well as in the breakfast offer and in the Bistrot with traditional Ligurian dishes.

I have been working for twenty years, and now I have been at the Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa for almost eight years, because my passion has always been the sea, both as a place and a base for my dishes. Over these eight years, we have managed to bring Le Cupole and the hotel’s other restaurants to an excellent level, from breakfast to lunch at the Bistrot.

Graziano Duca

It is obvious that a close-knit team is essential behind the stoves, and here, after eight years, the chef can count on a consolidated core of collaborators.

Regarding his gastronomic concept, Graziano Duca values tradition:

Tradition has remained a fundamental element in my offer, the kitchen equipment has been changed and the techniques and cooking methods have evolved. I like to rediscover evergreen dishes like Cima alla Genovese or the classic Vitello tonnato which are revisited and reinterpreted with modern techniques, becoming exquisite dishes, the perfect mix between tradition and modernity.

The Chef continues, “my style of cooking is authentic and genuine, but with sharp flavors, few ingredients but with lots of taste and flavor”.

Working in a place with a high concentration of gastronomic proposals, such as the Grand Hotel Bristol Resort & Spa, the real challenge is to enhance the hotel’s restaurant and to make it attractive also for foreign customers.

The diversity of the clientele is an important aspect to consider; the Grand Hotel Bristol & Spa is mostly frequented by international customers. Therefore, my cuisine will offer dishes with traditional tastes always trying to balance the particular and different flavors of a foreign clientele.

The Chef

The cuisine of the Grand Hotel Bristol Spa & Resort is appreciated not only by the guests but especially by the local clientele who choose the hotel’s restaurant Le Cupole or the Bistrot for light lunches or dinners.

THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE TERRITORY

The Chef Graziano Duca favors local products and works with Italian raw ingredients: 90% Italian products from local suppliers and artisans. In the hotel’s seaside restaurant, fish is obviously the protagonist of many proposals and it is interesting to analyze the relation between the chef and this precious raw material, which requires attention and expertise.

There’s no doubt that technique and equipment are key to processing fish – you select large fish about twenty or thirty kilos – and blast them down at -36 degrees, using the proper techniques I have studied and using sea water to keep them fresh and savory.

The Chef

NOVELTY: AGING OF THE FISH

For some time, I have been approaching the method of aging fish which I really enjoy and which could become a characteristic of the proposal of the restaurant Le Cupole. Some customers have already tried this proposal and their taste buds have been extremely pleased. Technically, it is a method like that of the meat. Obviously, the result on fish of certain sizes – swordfish, croaker, tuna – is a greater flavor and something particular that remains quite unknown, but that changes the taste of the fish a lot, enhancing also prestigious fish like grouper.

THE CHEF AND THE CLIENTS

The cuisine of Chef Graziano Duca is the result of working in synergy with the customer. The chef studies, analyzes the tastes of his customers, refining and perfecting the menu proposals according to the needs and demands of the moment and the season.

My experiments are in line with the taste of the customer. The result is 50% given by my professionalism and that of my brigade and 50% by the customer.

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R COLLECTION HOTELS GROUP

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LO CHEF GRAZIANO DUCA

LO CHEF DEL GRAND HOTEL BRISTOL RESORT & SPA NEL GOLFO DEL TIGULLIO

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